When the food from bird feeders, after it is disturbed by feeding birds, falls onto the ground, it is usually lost. In order to salvage this food, feed trays are sometimes positioned under the feeder to catch fallen bird food and also to provide an additional perch for feeding birds. An example of such a feed tray is seen in co-pending application Ser. No. 12/228,108, entitled Modular Bird Feeder System.
While such feed tray components are successful in receiving bird food falling from the bird feeder housings, the trays are also a repository for rainwater which collects and then stagnates in the tray. This often results not only in producing a rancid odor, but also saturates and makes the food in the tray inedible. If left there long enough, the water will mix with leaves and other debris to present a breeding ground for insects.
Existing feed trays have openings for draining water. However, none of these prior trays are configured to quickly, efficiently, and effectively drain substantially all the water in the tray, to allow the tray to dry, and thus avoid the resulting water accumulation problems.